Some will understandably view this game as the beginning of the second-half race to the bottom: The Blue Jackets recently traded their discontented 23-year-old number-one center for a two-years-younger up-and-coming defenceman, and no doubt have visions of Auston Matthews filling the 1C role for them as soon as next season.
While a last-place finish offers less guarantee than ever of securing the first overall pick due to the tweaked lottery rules, the Jackets have the best possible odds at the moment, dead last in the League with 34 points and a miserable -33 goal differential. The Blue Jackets have again run into the injury bug this season, with most notably Sergei Bobrovsky and captain Nick Foligno currently out hurt.